Hubble catches fearsome Red Spider

larger   This bipolar nebula makes monster waves of gas

By Richard Stenger
CNN Sci-Tech Writer

(CNN) -- Looking more like a strange predator than the home of one of the hottest known stars, the Red Spider Nebula came into sharp focus in a new image from the Hubble Space Telescope.

The nebula is the mortal coil of a dying star in the constellation Sagittarius. Approaching the end of its life, the star is shedding its outer material into space, in this case forming a stunning bipolar or two-lobed nebula.

The arachnid-like veil around the super-hot star boasts stellar winds that have generated waves as high as 62 million miles (100 billion km), said European scientists, who released the image Tuesday.

The Hubble image clarity reveals complex ripples along the gaseous boundaries of the nebula.

"These waves are driven by stellar winds radiating from the hot central star, much as a wind passing over a lake can generate waves on the water," the Hubble researchers said in a statement.

The gusts make hurricanes seem like child's breath, billowing at speeds as high as 10 million mph (16 million km/h).

Besides possessing phenomenal winds, the Red Spider boasts incredible heat. The temperature of the gas waves blisters at 18,000 degrees F (10,000 C), the scientists said.

The central white dwarf, the compact remnant of the original star, burns at least as hot as 900,000 degrees F (500,000 C), making it one of the hottest in the universe. It is located about 3,000 light-years from Earth.

The composite color image reveals the presence of numerous elements. Light from sulfur ions appears red. Nitrogen ions look orange. And hydrogen ions appear green. Atomic oxygen is light blue and oxygen ions are dark blue.